How to Write 刚 (gāng) — Meaning “just / firm / strong”

Picture a strong knife (刂) cutting into a hill (冈) — it needs to be firm and tough to break through. This image helps you remember that 刚 means 'firm' or 'strong', and also the sound is similar to the left part 'gāng'.

Write the left part 冈 first: start with a vertical stroke, then a horizontal stroke with a hook down, then a left-falling stroke, and finally a dot. Then add the right part 刂: a vertical hook stroke and a short vertical line. Keep the left side narrow and the right side tall, and don't let the knife radical touch the left part.

The left parts are different: 刚 uses 冈 (hill), 刈 uses 乂 (crossed knives), and 刊 uses 干 (dry/do). In meaning, 刚 means 'just' or 'firm', 刈 means 'to mow or cut grass', and 刊 means 'to carve or publish'. Visually, 刚 is much more common in daily Chinese.

刚 is most often used as an adverb meaning 'just now' in words like 刚才 (just a moment ago) and 刚刚 (just now). It also means 'just right' in 刚好 (happen to) and 'strong' in words like 刚强 (firm and unyielding). You will hear it frequently in everyday speech, for example, '我刚才吃饭了' (I just ate).

Common words containing 刚 include: 刚才 (gāng cái) — just now / a moment ago; 刚刚 (gāng gāng) — just now / just; 刚好 (gāng hǎo) — just right / happen to.